SPOTLIGHT: Inside the all-female mechanic workshop in Sokoto where gender roles are reversed

Traditionally, auto mechanic workshops are dominated by men — but the young women at Nana Female Mechanic Garage, Sokoto state, are changing that narrative and doing their bit to blur age-long gender lines. The women, some of whom are undergraduates, are making inroads in the male-dominated occupation on a daily basis.

“When I told my mother this is what I want to learn, she was surprised. I explained to her that the place is safe, they have gadgets that would ease our labour and most importantly, it will help reduce the problem of gender discrimination,” Gladys Obasi, one of the female mechanics, told TheCable.

While working on a Sienna vehicle, Obasi explained why she decided to venture into auto repairs despite currently studying radiology at Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto.

“I joined two months ago, just before schools resumed session after the long break due to COVID-19 pandemic,” she added.

For Shamsiya Ibrahim, who is training to be a nurse, it was a case of following in her father’s footsteps.

Shamsiya said she had been passionate about the job “since my childhood days” and was “very inquisitive” while her father worked.

“I play with my dad’s tools at his workshop, so it wasn’t surprising to my parents when I told them I was going into the profession fully despite being a student nurse,” she said.

“I love both jobs and it gives me sense of fulfillment that I can take care of myself without seeking assistance from anybody. When I have classes in the morning, I come here in the afternoon but I mostly run night shifts at the clinic.”

Shamsiya, who specialises in fixing the electrical issues of cars, is the life of the garage due to her larger-than-life attitude.

“I have worked on Peugeot, Honda, Mercedes, and other brands of cars that customers bring to our garage with a smiling face,” she said.

Shamsiya and her colleagues in the mechanic garage were put together by Nana Girls and Women Empowerment Initiative, which is run by Fatimah Adamu, an associate professor of gender studies in the department of sociology, Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto.

Adamu, a passionate advocate of women’s rights and empowerment, says the rise of female car ownership in Sokoto partly birthed the initiative.

She said: “We have so many women owning cars, we realised that some women who are working cannot take their vehicle for repair because there is the feeling that the place is not conducive for women. It’s a male environment. So, she would rather have to rely on her brother, son, or husband to take it for her. But I said that shouldn’t be the case, so we came up with the female mechanic initiative.”

Adamu said it was also important for women “to have serious income and not the frying of small things” so as to be financially independent to support their families.

“So we did an assessment of where we can get women to earn better pay and that was how the idea of mechanics came in. By doing that, we are rendering services to women as car owners and income generators,” she said.

Adamu said the mechanics are trained in three areas — “the mechanical, panel beating and the electrical sides of the vehicle”.

She, however, acknowledged that the female mechanics face the challenge of working on heavy equipment, hence they have male tutors to assist and guide them.

“We have the challenge of loosening vehicles. For them, it’s very hard and as women, they don’t have the energy, ” she said. “The teachers we have are men and they are used to the energy type of work. We also had to do research to find alternatives.”

She said despite the reluctance of parents to allow their female children to learn the trade, “many of the girls” are passionate about the job and dedicated to it.